glowing eyes

Standing behind an electronic warfare specialist, police Sergeant Ingvar Tempe, Shepard made sure that he was fully comfortable with his new duties and was frankly getting high doing his favorite thing. The captain knew that the electronic warfare specialist's console was understaffed from the very beginning of the flight – few people believed then that the frigate would have to engage in combat operations, conduct active real reconnaissance, and organize counteraction to the enemy's desire to identify the spy. “Ingvar, give me all the information on the technical and electronic infrastructure of Eden Prime quietly on the screens. Everything that we can reach and use to our advantage. Without logging in-yet.” “Easy, Captain.” Tempke clicked on several sensors without turning around. “First of all, these are cosmodromes. There are officially three of them on Eden Prime. It's full of all kinds of electronics and technical equipment, there is a transport infrastructure. Secondly, these are power substations scattered all over the planet. There are also a lot of electronics there, but the main thing is powerful energy storage devices. Thirdly, it is a monorail, which also requires a significant amount of energy and corresponding complex control systems. And finally, the most delicious thing, in my opinion, is the weather and climate control stations. Electronics – wagons, powerful radiators and receivers, energy storage devices. It's just a song. I'm sorry, sir. I've been discussing it with the guys.… We also had a topic – climate wars using planetary technical infrastructure. I've been calculating along the way.: According to open data, the planet is agricultural, and the weather is being monitored very, very seriously, because if there are the slightest fluctuations in the climate, the losses will be enormous. It's the off-season, and harvesting won't start anytime soon. Even for early ripening varieties. According to my calculations, sir, if necessary, it is quite possible to arrange a local or planetary weather apocalypse in a few minutes. Thunder, lightning, torrential rain on a tropical scale with electrification of the atmosphere to the level of almost continuous breakouts. “Ingvar had clearly "got on his favorite horse" and now wondered why this strange commander of the landing crew was in no hurry to interrupt him. Suddenly, he remembered that Captain Shepard had recently been the ship's senior officer and instantly interrupted himself. "I'm sorry, sir. Got carried away.” “You sound interesting, Ingvar. And most importantly – on business,” Without a grin, Shepard said with absolute seriousness. “Calculate the situation with the local Apocalypse for me.The maximum height of the impact zone is six kilometers. The width of the zone is two kilometers. With maximum energy at six points of defeat. Consider that you must destroy an object that is eight to twelve times more secure than the Path of Destiny. The condition is to prevent this object from taking off or activating a beam weapon. Efforts should be made to disable or temporarily disable all of its electronics and gun systems. Up to and including heavy weapons. The level is a superdreadnought. Along the way, identify the points on the planet where the effectiveness of such an apocalypse will be maximum. Is the task clear? “Yes, sir!” Tempke, forgetting even to nod, enthusiastically set to work. Talking to Ingvar, Shepard had already known for several tens of seconds that the commander of the ship was standing next to him. Therefore, taking a step back, he looked questioningly at the senior officer of the frigate. Anderson just nodded silently and, with a sign that was barely noticeable to the other officers present at the CIC at that moment, asked the XO to retreat even further, to other additional "necklace" consoles that had not yet been activated. The main consoles, every single one, were already occupied and operational. “Are you getting ready?” Anderson asked quietly. “Yes, sir," Shepard said softly. “The repeater will have too many ears.But in the meantime, we have time.” “What's the next point?” The frigate commander asked. “Main guns, sir," Shepard replied. “I know there are two policemen working there now. One is at the main console, the other is at the side console. I think two gunners are enough for our capabilities.Fire control will be organized from the bridge or from the cockpit of the frigate.” “I agree. Come on, let's see what we can do there.” Anderson turned around and the two officers walked slowly up to the second deck. *** Two policemen paused from their work at the consoles for a moment, nodded in greeting and looked questioningly at the senior officers who entered the compartment. Anderson, who was walking a little ahead, briefly waved his hand, which meant – work, there is no need for a report. Shepard leaned over the main console. Anderson went to the second one. What is the achieved accuracy of hitting with a two-shot salvo? - Shepard asked the senior gunner quietly. “We managed to upgrade from the third grade to the second grade. I think” the sergeant realized that the senior assistant commander of the ship was quite ready to allow an informal format of conversation. In two hours, Tom and I will be able to provide first class as well. I suppose you'll need precision and speed? “Yes, Bill," Shepard nodded, "we need to hit the target at the maximum range of the first class – a circle with a diameter of just over one and a half meters. Four charges in a minimum amount of time. Two volleys. Make it in time before the laser charging chamber is covered with armored curtains. The target is inactive by itself, but the armored doors will close very quickly at the slightest suspicion of aggression on our part. We will need to move the guns as soon as possible and strike as I just said. I'm afraid we won't get a second chance, Bill," Shepard stated calmly. – If the target activates the main radiator or closes it with curtains, the situation will become more complicated for us very quickly.” “Shooting from what distance?” “If you take the maximum – ninety – one hundred and eighty kilometers. The frigate will move in an anti-aircraft maneuver, and I assume that small lasers, such as our search, will also work on us POISK.” “Hmm. Small ones.” Bill braced himself. “I'm sorry, Captain, it slipped out," the senior gunner's fingers quickly performed the necessary manipulations on the keyboard. “I believe that not even the first accuracy class will be needed, but the zero accuracy class. We will be able to provide this only by five o'clock in the afternoon. It's an interesting task, Captain. Just the kind I like. But…” “The frigate's pilot will do as you say. I have reinforced the pilot group with another specialist pilot. The two of them or one of them can handle it anyway. But I would not like to force the ship to perform unthinkable pirouettes in the immediate vicinity of the target.” “I understand. We are a reconnaissance frigate, not an assault frigate.” “Yes, Bill. Consider the two options. The first is to inflict maximum damage in the attacking version and the second is to inflict maximum damage in the finishing version. Please note that the target's charging chamber will not always be strictly vertical or strictly horizontal. The guidance node can also move chaotically.” “Understood, Captain. Do you expect the target to snap back?” “I'm sure of it. And we need to do everything so that she can't snap anymore. Strike, and the target must be disarmed. Keep working. I am waiting for your results on my omny-tool. The deadline is seventeen ten.” “Yes, sir!" The gunner nodded, catching the nod of agreement from his junior colleague, who had already spoken with Captain Anderson. A minute later, both senior officers left the frigate's main guns. *** “The commander, sir," a policeman with a chef's degree approached them. “Here's the lunch menu. For the entire crew. May I offer you some test dishes?” Andersonscanned the menu, signed with the encoder on the screen of the reader provided by the sergeant. - Come on, Captain. We will take a sample directly from the boilers” The frigate commander looked at Shepard. Let's come to you, Sergeant," he turned to the chef. “Yes, sir," the policeman stepped aside and walked to the left and slightly behind the senior officers of the ship to the enclosure now designated for the kitchen. Here," he handed over a long ladle and plates. Anderson scooped portions from the cauldrons one at a time, filled several plates, leaned over the kitchen table and slowly sampled the first, second and third courses.: “All right," he looked at the first mate. “Take a sample, John.” “Yes, sir.” Shepard took a ladle and, after tasting the first, second and third, smiled with satisfaction. “All right, Michael” He noted that Anderson was already signing the kitchen journal on the counter. “You can prepare the portions, Michael," Captain Anderson said. “I allow you to cook up to three portions of the reserve.” “Yes, sir," the policeman-cook nodded. At that moment, Shepard's omny-tool sounded. The commander of the landing group turned on the small screen and got acquainted with the solution proposed by Jeff Moro. Anderson was also interested, and the officers moved away from the cook and began discussing the pilot's proposed solution in a low voice. “I think we can agree with Jeff's decision.”Captain Anderson said. "I suggest you come to my cabin and have lunch." We'll discuss it at the same time.” “Captain. I agree that we need to discuss the information we have received, but let's not ignore the need for our presence among the crew members," Shepard objected. “Sooner or later, officers, sergeants, foremen, and enlisted men will have questions. It would be better to explain the incomprehensible to everyone at once. Moreover, in three or four hours we will approach the repeater area. During this time, we have too much to do to prepare for all imaginable accidents that may await us on the other side of the repeater. “I agree.” Anderson glanced at his watch. "It's two o'clock in the afternoon right now,– he looked at the cook. “Michael, announce the gathering of the officers of the crew for lunch.” “Yes, sir," the cook nodded, turned on the ship's broadcast on his console and announced the standard invitation formula for officers. Over lunch, Captain Anderson and Captain Shepard briefly introduced their fellow officers to the planned actions before entering the repeater leading to the Utopia system. It was noticeable how much the ship's officers perked up when they heard that they were not going to have another tedious training, but real combat, reconnaissance, and sabotage work. Neither Shepard nor Anderson disclosed the details, but the ship's officers already understood that a lot would depend on what they could understand during an active remote search while parked in a hidden position at the repeater. “And one last thing, colleagues," Captain Anderson said. “After lunch, without the slightest exception, all members of the frigate's crew put on light spacesuits, armor and fasten helmets to their spacesuit belts in full readiness for use.First–aid kits and pistols must be carried with you. Lieutenant Alenko has drawn up a duty schedule for the rapid response team. I assume that later in the evening we will hold two or three training sessions for all crew members. The estimated time is seventeen thirty. The details will be communicated to the personnel directly during the training. Once again, I want to warn you: practice all your workouts to the maximum. There is a very high probability that we will actually have to engage in battle. Therefore, there will be no clarification on whether it is a training exercise or a combat one. Any of the future trainings will be able to become combat in the shortest possible time. My first assistant and I will punish you severely for any mistakes you make. Officers should check their subordinates' equipment. Helmets - prepare for the transition to a closed loop. As soon as possible. Any questions? No? Everyone is free," he motioned for the officers to leave their seats at the dining table. You were right, Shepard. The officers needed our presence. *** Exactly one hour later, the lights went out in all the compartments of the Normandy. The loud sound of the ship's siren broke the afternoon silence. Beams of powerful lanterns swept across the walls as the crew ran to take up their places according to the emergency schedule. Most of the consoles were de-energized. "The crew should switch to manual control! Close your helmets! Turn on autonomous life support systems. Keep quiet in the compartments!The ship is under threat of detection by the enemy” such texts appeared on the helmet displays of most frigates. “Reanimate navigation systems without turning on external sensors. Check the operation of electronic warfare systems according to the "Ray" and "Sphere" schemes. Identify and fix malfunctions in weapons systems." The introductions came one after the other. The commander of the frigate and the senior assistant moved around the ship like shadows, carefully observing the actions of the crew members. From the outside, it was not noticeable that such a large–scale training was being carried out inside the ship - Jeff Moro and his partner received a categorical commander's order on their omny-tools to observe the ship's previous course and speed. But inside the Normandy, it became hot in the truest sense of the word: depressurization mode was activated in many compartments. The crew members had to constantly prepare for rapid transitions from one part of the ship's rooms and compartments to another. No allowances were made for the fact that weightlessness reigned in the depressurized compartments, separated by bluish "lenses" of emergency insulating fields from the compartments that retained the atmosphere. Speed, quality, completeness, correctness. Fires of various sizes appeared chaotically in three compartments of the frigate – from a simple wiring fire to quite powerful and destructive explosions.Despite the fact that Captain Anderson did not allow the use of open fire in other compartments, it was quite difficult to guess exactly when the next fire would be and where it would occur, and what size it would acquire. The training session lasted exactly forty minutes. Finally, lines began to crawl across the screens of the helmet displays of the spacesuits, informing people about the end of the training, and the ship's siren briefly purred, notifying them of the shutdown of the simulation mode. The crew quickly and quietly took their seats according to the usual flight schedule. The emergency party eliminated the consequences of the fires, bringing the compartments allocated for fires to a normal state. The usual lighting turned on, and the remote controls, which had been de-energized for the duration of the training, started working. Captain Anderson entered his cabin and announced the general results of the training over the speakerphone. All the Normans got it. Without the slightest exception. The omny-tools of the crew members received files with a complete analysis of the actions of each of the officers, sergeants, petty officers and privates, a complete timeline of events, as well as a possible and realistic perspective of the mistakes and shortcomings made. “The first training session showed, colleagues, that the crew is ready for real combat operations with a rating of "mediocre"” Captain Anderson said over the ship's broadcast. The training will be complicated and repeated over the next three days.” With that, Anderson turned off the ship-wide broadcast and looked at Shepard, who was sitting next to him. It's a good thing that Naylus Kraik didn't try to get out of his cabin." He was silent for a few seconds, as usual. “Okay, that's it, by the way. I'm more interested and worried about who would give us these three quiet days to train.” “We only have a little over a day left, sir, before we have to fight," Shepard replied. “And, to be honest, I was expecting just such a result. It is mediocre. It's also good that it's not bad.” Shepard slowly turned his head and looked around the commander's cabin. “At the very least, we now have a full complement of specialists who have more or less mastered their duties. This allows us to hope. Although hope against such a ship," he pointed with his gaze at the "shrimp" flickering on the nearest wall screen located above the commander's desk, "is too weak a basis for victory. “Now all the Normans will be on edge.” Anderson said thoughtfully. “I don't think we'll be able to relax for long anymore, Commander.” Said Shepard. “I do not believe that there is only one such ship. The archaeological base proves with certainty that there are at least several dozen such ships. The total life span of detachments of such ships, if you look at the age of the drawings, is generally difficult to imagine: more than thirty million years. There is a drawing from forty million years ago. This is an unimaginable figure for humanity. “For most of the intelligent organic races known to us, earthlings, the explored part of the Milky Way Space is the same," said the cabin owner. At best, two or three million years. But not thirty. Not forty.” Anderson nodded, agreeing with the XO's opinion. “Do you think we'll need the support of Earth's fleets?” “No, Commander. Any movement of our fleets now will cause unhealthy and unnecessary interest in Eden Prime, provoke this ship to take active action - both against the planet and against the fleets.I do not believe that we will not be able to fulfill our task to the maximum. One ship against one ship with the support of the planet's infrastructure is fair. A fleet against one, even such a strong ship– is a sign of weakness and immaturity," Shepard remarked with conviction. “We cannot give the Citadels any reason to continue to be considered a "childish" race.” “I wish I knew why this ship came to Eden Prime," Anderson said. “No matter why he arrived, his appearance on the planet can be confidently qualified as an invasion. Even without taking a position at the repeater, without conducting a full hardware remote reconnaissance, without using the Forecast complex in combat mode, you can be sure that someone else's ship has arrived for something very valuable and important. So far, I can't think of anything but a Prothean beacon, Commander," Shepard admitted honestly. “I wish I knew why he needed it.” “We'll find out, Captain.” Anderson turned on the additional screens “For now, let's think together about how to make another workout more difficult. I think it should be scheduled for half past five in the evening.The third training session will be held at half past nine in the evening. At eleven o'clock in the evening, the ship will dock at the repeater point. The duty shifts will start working with real data obtained during remote hardware reconnaissance. To be honest, I'm waiting for the frigate's equipment to "dig up" for us. I can already see that we won't be able to do without a clash with this ship.” Anderson glanced at the flickering image of the shrimp, then looked at the executive officer. “I'm sure of it, Commander," Shepard agreed, turning on his omny-tool.Both senior officers of the ship began to form a scenario for the next training session. *** At half past five in the evening, the silence on the ship was broken by the bells of a loud battle. This time, the alarm was not an emergency, but a combat one. The frigate's virtual intelligence worked at full capacity, creating all sorts of tricks for the crew members working at the controls and extremely reducing the time for both decision-making and necessary actions. Anderson and Shepard participated in this training along with all the crew members on equal terms. The conditions and parameters of the training changed during its implementation. The ship's VI followed only the general plan, otherwise he was free to choose his options. *** At seven o'clock, a siren blared briefly to indicate the end of the training session. Helmet locks clicked, and the emergency blood-red lighting was replaced by the usual yellowish-white. Fifteen minutes after the siren, VI analysis of the training was posted on the wall screens. The information was also sent to the omny-tools of the frigate's crew members. “Not much better," Anderson said, meeting Shepard again in his cabin. “Now I see that the third training session is absolutely necessary.” “Commander, allow me to report," the voice of the senior gunner rang out. “The zero accuracy class in the settings of the ship's artillery systems has been achieved and fixed.” “Accepted. Prepare the artillery systems for effective fire,” Anderson ordered. “Reduce the time to bring the artillery systems into combat position to a minimum.Even a second would be too much of a luxury for us. Go ahead. “Yes, sir," the senior gunner replied and turned off the channel. “Do you expect both an attack and a finish?” Anderson asked, having read the data transmitted from the ship's gunners' consoles on his omny-tool. “Yes, Captain. If the influence of the planet's infrastructure, including weather control stations and equipment for monorails and spaceports, is effective, then we will have to really guarantee that it is impossible for this ship to put up any effective resistance.” “And indoctrination?” “Commander, I'm not going to erect paper castles, but after such a complex impact, rapid indoctrination is out of the question, in my opinion – the shrimp simply won't have enough energy for a pulse, and the landing group under my leadership will cope with the rest. A blow to the planet's energy infrastructure, a blow from the Eden climate installations, a blow from an exploration ship – three blows combined will be able to ensure the inactivity of this monster for a sufficiently long time.I assume that the ship will survive after such a complex strike, but will it be more than a hull?…” “I see something is bothering you, Captain.” Anderson took a close look at the first officer. “Something that you don't want to accept as even a hypothesis yet.” “Captain, I'm not sure how to put it exactly. I really want to believe that after the collision with this ship, we will no longer have such problems. And I can't. There is no feeling that this will be an isolated incident. Such a ship appeared in the space of the Galaxy when the Apocalypse was approaching for any intelligent race capable of leaving a clear image of it on some durable material medium. Which means that the ship did not use its weapons to the fullest. He did not immediately destroy intelligent, mostly, I think, organic life. He was... playing cat and mouse with her, or something. He was proud of his might, his invulnerability, his strength, his might. It was exhausting. The punishment,” Shepard said thoughtfully but clearly. “What was he punished for? I don't know. It's not clear to me. Why was there no more evidence of these ships on the planets where descendants later found such images? Where are all the locals - reasonable and not so - residents? I know that archaeologists are not omnipotent, but any excavations proved the almost complete absence of remains. Does this mean that there was more than one such ship? Does this mean that he came to this planet accompanied by smaller ships? Who had other capabilities or performed other functions? I don't know. Something tells me that this ship is the beginning of a terrible period in the history of the Milky Way. And the fact that he moved to our human colonized planet… Does this mean that we humans, humanity, are in the forefront of destruction?” There was no tension or worry in Shepard's voice – it was even, but Anderson felt that the XO was not only speaking seriously after reflecting on what he had said, he was speaking from the heart, not caring. “I'm not ready to say that this is a pure machine driven by a program, Captain. And I'm also not ready to say that it's a living being. I have to assume that in order to defeat such a creature of unknown intelligence, we will have to combine the power of intelligent organic and synthetic life. I understand that none of the current races of the Milky Way will agree to a full-scale synthesis. Maybe we can manage with coexistence, partnership, and alliance. But only at the expense of organic life, its capabilities to defeat a horde of such ships.… I have no feeling that such a ship is the only one or there are few of them, Commander…” Shepard saw that Anderson was listening to him attentively and was satisfied with this attention, and most importantly, with his understanding of what was said. Still, it's good when the commander of a ship is a person equal to you, the senior assistant, in terms of level and profile of training. Until we can get artificial intelligence as our allies, we will have to work in regimes beyond the limits for organics. And there's this problem, Captain.” Shepard pointed to the image of the repeater that had already appeared on the navigator's screen. “We humans are a young race by the standards of the Galaxy. And we... with an ease worthy of better use, have already "clung" to the repeaters. And, accordingly, almost completely stopped the development of engines and systems that make it possible to do without these catapults. If it weren't for this repeater, it wouldn't be necessary to move through the tunnel it broke through.… We could apply most of the intelligence techniques known to mankind. But the distances between the systems… Huge for our current capabilities. It is clear that in a year's time, Eden Prime may well be left a bare, stony cobblestone, devoid of atmosphere and almost all of the current infrastructure. Only a year and everything can change dramatically for the worse for us, intelligent organics. And for some reason, I know we don't have this year. And maybe not even a month. Not even ten days. If we don't show up on the planet tomorrow... this ship will fulfill its function. And I personally have no doubt that he will leave the planet. It will leave loudly and very painfully. It hurts for us organics. He will leave because he is sure that we have nothing significant to oppose him. For us, the intelligent organics of the Galaxy, I am sure that in just a few hours... information about the shrimp and its actions... will be a shock to the entire crew of our ship, without the slightest exception. According to my calculations, there are only a few hours left before this "shrimp" enters the range of the long-range scanners of the Eden control system. “Shepard did not voice the standard phrase, indicating regret for the unrealization of many already worked-out plans. “If you do not take into account many points, then, according to the standard scenario, the first thing this ship will do is "cut off" all long–range communications. The planet won't be able to call for help. The Idens will be calling, but they... won't be heard. I assume that this monster has a powerful system on board that filters information traffic. From the outside, almost everything will be as usual. But any hint of a call, of information about what happened, will undoubtedly be tracked and blocked by the Reaper. This planet does not have the latest military communications centers, nor does it have a developed military infrastructure. I believe that this is not a reason to calm down. Even systems like the Martian anti-space defense with its truly cyclopean guns will be able to do little against this "shrimp".” “Do you think that after landing on the planet, the ship will be more vulnerable?” Anderson asked, looking through the profile data on his instrumentation. “The large ships of most intelligent organic races known to me are generally unable to make any regular landings on planets for various reasons. Any of the possible and acceptable ones.” Shepard asked. “Except in the event of a disaster, but this is no longer a standard landing. This is a fall. To keep such a Reaper ship in the position of immediate takeoff, I dare say, a significant part of the onboard energy will be consumed. If we imagine a "chain", then its first link is the landing of such a ship on a planet, the second is the absence of the need for such a ship to move around the planet, the third is the fulfillment of some short–term mission by the amphibious crews of the ship, the fourth is the lack of the "natives" the ability to significantly oppose both the ship itself and its The landing party. As a result, it is clear that even an automaton of the current VI level or even a minimal AI will not keep the shields at maximum – energy will be required for the banal constant balancing of the ship's position in space. These paws," Shepard touched the giant "appendages" with the beam of the laser pointer, "may well not be the supports of the ship in this particular case, taking on its weight. I suspect that they will be brought together. And the ship itself will barely touch the surface of the planet with its "paws". Perhaps, by doing so, they indicate the landing, misleading the locals, disguising themselves. Keeping a "cocoon" around the hull will allow it to launch immediately, without lengthy preparation. "Cocoon" - there will be, shields - there will be. But it's hard for me to imagine an automaton keeping its shields at maximum in such a safe atmosphere and on an almost unarmed planet. This is paranoia, and automatons don't suffer from paranoia," Shepard clarified. “Only the creators of automata can suffer from it, but it is very difficult to fully program paranoia.” “I can't say that I completely agree with everything you've said, Captain," Anderson said after thinking about what he'd heard for a few minutes. “You're right about a lot of things, of course. I really hope that hardware intelligence will not give us grounds for any ill-considered and quick actions. Although, to summarize everything you've said about this," David took a quick glance at the screen image of the shrimp, “All I can say is that we will have to overcome any conceivable shock quickly and collect as much data as possible in a very short time. I doubt, I sincerely doubt, that we will be given much time to make decisions on the further action plan.” The frigate's commander switched on the speaker audio link. “Ingvar, how long will it take to bring Eden's climate control systems into "local apocalypse" mode?” “If only through climate control - from fifteen minutes to a minute” An electronic warfare specialist responded. “A lot. Is there any way to reduce it to three or five seconds?” Anderson asked. “It is possible, but you will need to know exactly where the goal is and what its characteristics are. At least the most general ones.” “You will know where the goal is. And the characteristics..." Anderson hesitated. “Consider that this is the maximum of everything you can imagine. We will need one strike that can completely secure the target.” “Destruction?” – the specialist specified. “Yes, I think that's exactly what we need. I can tell you more precisely only after hardware intelligence, Ingvar,” Anderson replied after a moment, "calculate the option of destruction and the option of maximum disarming. In every sense.” “May I submit the decision to your screens in two minutes?”the specialist asked, clearly, as Shepard understood, sensing another extremely interesting and difficult task. “Permission granted.” – Anderson disconnected the connection on this channel, but did not look up at Shepard. "You don't want to destroy this ship to the end, do you, Shepard? Am I right?” “Yes, sir.” – Shepard did not lie and tell a lie. “If Charon gave us, humanity, access to Arcturus, access to other civilizations, then I am more than convinced that this ship will give us the experience of thirty million years of development. Which is orders of magnitude greater than the experience of any race in the Milky Way. Having such a device… Humanity will be able to prepare for war much better.” “Do you really believe that he is not alone?” Anderson asked. “I believe. He's an intelligence officer, just like us. Observation. Control. Tracking. Whatever you want to call it. And if we manage to "pacify" such an active inner spy by putting him at the service of the inhabitants of the Galaxy, it will be more valuable than a metal or plastic corpse. Even a corpse like him. And something tells me that there are several more of these... corpses within the Milky Way. There is no need to add another one to their "community". “And..." Anderson cautiously remarked. “I understand that this sounds like a mystical revelation, Commander," Shepard clarified. “But I already feel that there are organics on this ship. Intelligent organics,” The XO was silent for a few seconds. Anderson clearly felt that this was not a tactical pause, which was customary for communication between people. “It feels like their souls are... weak.…” “Do you think they're... in captivity?” Anderson asked without looking up at his XO. “More than a prisoner. They're under his control, Commander. The Puppets,” Shepard replied softly. “It's hard to formulate this verbally. Convention... grows by leaps and bounds. Many necessary meanings... are lost.” “Indoctrination," Anderson said. “Yes, as an option," the XO agreed. “And can you specify the races they belong to?”Andersonstill did not want to look at either the figure or the face of his interlocutor. “I can," Shepard confirmed, "but I don't want to disturb this ship's systems too much right now. I have no doubt about his perfection and I don't want to ruin the whole operation we are preparing. "He" might be wary. Then we will not be able to conduct reconnaissance, we will not be ready for effective and immediate actions. And there are thousands of people on the planet. The Earthlings. Not only Earthlings, which is also important," the XO clarified. “If the Reaper starts to "land" on the planet and its inhabitants with its ray… We, the inhabitants of the frigate, the Normandians, will never get clean.” Shepard, Anderson clearly felt, was having a hard time keeping his voice calm. “There is only a suggestion, an educated guess, that these few reasonable... extraordinary individuals.I doubt that a ship of such high class would take on board mediocrity. Even as prisoners or slaves. No. They are clearly not the last ten personalities. And is their race really important?… There are always such personalities in any race. At any, Commander” Shepard repeated, for whom verbal repetition has never been something negative. In the orphanage, he often heard one phrase: "Repetition is the mother of learning. And it's not just the exercises." And he agreed with the meaning and essence of this phrase. “Commander, sir,” Ingvar has contacted Captain Anderson. “I'm passing on the decision.” “Accepted, Ingvar, thank you.” – Anderson looked at the screen of his wrist omny-tool, turned off the speaker with a touch of the arm and stood up, moving closer to the big screen. Shepard rose next, also approaching the screen, on which the solution was already displayed line by line. "It might work.",Andersonsaid thoughtfully, reading and peering. “It might work," the frigate commander's voice was clearly filled with interest, mixed with satisfaction. “No, it might work!” he exclaimed. “Yes, it can! Now we need to conduct a third training session, finish preparing the ship for parking at the repeater, and we can solve this problem," Anderson caught a nod of agreement from the XO out of the corner of his eye.